Berkshire Utilities Have $13+ Million in Benefits from Western Energy Imbalance Market in 4th Qtr 2017

The California Independent System Operator (ISO) has released its western Energy Imbalance Market (EIM) 2017 fourth quarter benefits report that shows the real-time energy imbalance market produced $33.46 million benefits for its six participating members.

During the fourth quarter of 2017 two Berkshire Hathaway Energy companies had over $13 million in benefits. PacifiCorp realized benefits of $6.83 million and NV Energy saved $6.45 million.

The total benefits since the western regional market was launched in 2014 now total $288.44 million for all six members.

Western EIM participants helped reduce carbon emissions in the region by 7,730 metric tons by using 18,060 megawatt-hours of excess renewable energy that otherwise would have been turned off; this translates into removing 1,655 passenger cars from the highways for a year.

“The ISO’s western EIM continues its positive uptick in benefits, accruing savings as it promotes a greener and more reliable energy grid,” said ISO President and CEO Steve Berberich. “We are very pleased with the results for all participants in this growing market.”

In addition to leveraging the diverse resources from a larger pool, the effective use of carbon-free generation provides added environmental benefits. Besides using low-cost energy, EIM utilities reduce their costs by being able to join together to decrease the amount of energy reserves that individual utilities must carry in real time to manage load.

Disclosure: David Mazor is a freelance writer focusing on Berkshire Hathaway. The author is long in Berkshire Hathaway, and this article is not a recommendation on whether to buy or sell the stock. The information contained in this article should not be construed as personalized or individualized investment advice. Past performance is no guarantee of future results.